Monthly Archives: April 2016

As a survivor of the KR régime, have you ever wondered whether the entire KR sinister entity or any KR or to a most intimate extent an ex-KR possessed any notion of “honor,” “dignity” and “integrity” when they committed genocide on their own people? Did the KR and ex-KRs set up Toul Slèng and the burying pits of cadavers in Cheung èk in the name of “honor” and “integrity” of their macabre ideology and doctrine?

You may ask why raising this question now when the ECCC is trying the remaining KR leaders? It is precisely that while this trial of the 2 remaining KR leaders is still on, the ex-KRs continue to rule Cambodia amassing fortune and power at the expense of the entire Khmer population. Now these same ex-KRs are setting a school of gruesome and horrifying thought that nobody could say anything that, in their state of mind, compromise their honor and dignity. Since they use the words “honor” and “dignity” without knowing what honor and dignity mean in terms of moral standards (BTW, do they understand these terminologies?), let raise some fundamental questions on how the surviving victims see and perceive through the heart and mind of the KR and ex-KRs in respect of human honor and dignity:

Was it an act of honor and dignity when the KR and ex-KRs killed Cambodians and destroyed the tissue of the Khmer society?

Did the KR and ex-KRs have honor and dignity when they cruelly tortured and bludgeoned innocent Cambodians throughout the

Was it an act of honor and dignity when the KR and ex-KRs transform the entire country into an atrocious labor and concentration camp?

Did the KR and ex-KRs shout honor and dignity when they pour the blood of the victims to paint the rice fields red?

Was it an act of honor and dignity when the KR and ex-KRs transform the life of Cambodians into a state and status lower than a beast?

Did the KR and ex-KRs have honor and dignity when they subject themselves to various foreign powers and forces to gain power and to hang on to it autocratically?

Is it an act of honor and dignity when the ex-KRs transform freedom and democracy into autocracy, the rule of law into the law of the jungle, the land that free people own into the land of their own, and state institutions into institution of corruption?

Do the ex-KRs have honor and dignity when they do not respect the honor and dignity of the people who are not cut from the same cloth as them and instead use threat as vehicle to silence opposing view and criticism?

Kacvey, do you recall the time in elementary school or at Lycée, when kids have to work so hard to earn a “Tableau d’Honneur” or “Tableau de Félicitation” that was later recorded in the “Livret Scolaire”?! Well, any honor must be earned; a person’s honor is what the other person recognizes. Self-granting-honor is pure garbage, altruistically speaking.

Furthermore, Herbert Hoover, once, said: “Honor is not the exclusive property of any political party.”

How was your first 10-day of the Year of Hanumaan?
Guess that you are back to your regular routine métro-boulot-métro-dodo and watching the fight between majority and minority dueling each other at a distance, by remote control and by FB. Or in other words, a simulacrum of fight of words and rhetoric lacking both intellect and brain.

Go on dastard and craven duelists, if your arms are long enough to reach the City of Lights and the City of Tonlé Buon Mouk! If you make a fool of yourself, who cares!

But Kacvey, while you were enjoying the Year of Hanumaan festivities, you still kept an eye on the news about the misadventure and blunder of the dauphin in CA, WA and MA. You can’t help but wonder how on earth a person who was appointed by his own father as a big honcho on intelligence could not read and understand the meaning of the protests that were publicly announced and without a hint of secrecy.

What do you expect from a non-intelligent dealing with intelligence? You know the rest of the sad saga: the process-server in Long Beach, the Lovell City Council resolution, the crying baby interview with VOA, Canada (*) … One reaps what one had sown!

Kacvey, hope your students on Political Strategies are more familiar with Sunzi’s “The Art of War” (孙子兵法) and Machiavelli’s “The Prince” than the intelligence hotshot.

Let look at the other side of the coin that seems to contain intrigue and machination; since no facts have surfaced yet, how about sounding out a few questions as a matter of inquisitive and unusual interest:
– Why the “father” has been so far so silent? He wasn’t silent about Paris and Rancho Mirage, was he?
– Did the “father” set up a test for his dauphin? If so, the dauphin flunks it miserably.
– Did both the “father” and the dauphin underestimate the intelligence and the determination of Khmer-Americans? If so, both father and son get an “F.”
– Did the “father” and the dauphin think that FREEDOM in the US is an empty notion? If so, another “F.”
– Did the “father” set up a trap that escapes the radar of the dauphin’s intelligence? If so, the “father” must have a parallel “super intelligence” outfit in his sleeves.
– Is the “father” having a second thought about the dauphin? The jury is still out on that, but learning from the history of the tyrant Pisistratus, Epimenides wrote to Solon that:”…I do not expect that his power (Pisistratus’s) will be continued to his children…”

5 centuries later, Tacitus added: “Those in supreme power always suspect and hate their next heir.”

At this precise moment, i.e. Tonlé Buon Mouk Time, Khmer astrologer forecasts the arrival of Goddess Sochendamony. She will settle in the celestial realm of time over Cambodia and begin to oversee the deployment of the Year of “Hanumaan.”

The time has also come to express our heartfelt thanks to the Lord Goat for his divine blessing and assistance given to all of us throughout Chnam Môr Mé.

Turning now to more terrestrial matters, you may wish to re-visit the letter sent out on 14 April 2015 under the title “Greeting the Khmer New Year” and to see how, one year and 78 other letters later, the situation in Cambodia has become in real terms. A part of that letter reads:“Since ever, Cambodians have been cheated out left and right;
All leaders only think for themselves, and never for the Khmer’s plights.
Rights are abused, lands taken, forests denuded, Mekong dried,
Cambodia’s future is far from being bright.”

Kacvey, have you then noticed any difference from the time you received that letter to the present one? No, there indeed is no difference at all, but it rather has become more serious and severe. Why so, you may ask? Because in addition to what was already projected at the beginning of the year, other “stuffs”, ceteris paribus, happened and came to add heavily to the already sullen political and social atmosphere. Chief among them are:
– the “cod” (as ironically called the “culture of disconnect”) becomes totally rotten and decomposed;
– the thuggery violence against opposition parliamentarians;
– the arrest and prosecution of opposition figures on trumped-up charges;
– the dispersion, delocalization and ineffectiveness of the 55 opponents;
– the exile of the minority leader;
– the functioning of the supposed-to-be-neutral “nec” is handicapped by its innate non-neutral constitution, and could well end up as “no elections coming;”
– the extremely low ratings by international organizations on performance by the government;
– the vehement protests in Paris and Rancho Mirage against the autocrat and currently in many cities in the US and Canada against his dauphin;
– the narcissistic use of social media for self-promotion along with the accumulation or childish competition of “like” bought through click farms or otherwise;
– the constitution by the autocrat of a fourth branch of power called the “facebook power” that, on the tip of a finger, rules over every bit of the three existing branches of power;
– the formation of a new task force to catch “illegal loggers” who have been logging with the benison of the high and powerful authority;
– the infidelity “tape” openly schemed and manipulated to create unnecessary and artificial confusion and suspicion;
– the passing of legislation that nobody likes;
– the reshuffling of the cabinet by way of musical chairs leaving the “totem reshuffler”, as usual, un-reshuffled, and
– the open cases of corruption at the embassy in South Korea and off-shore banking as revealed by the Panama Papers.

You may wonder whether Goddess Sochendamony should be happy with such a heavy dossier left by Lord Goat?! Guess not, like many other gods and goddesses in ancient time, e.g. Juno, Mercury, Neptune, Ares … they treated each other unfairly too! Well, let her do her job, and men do theirs, and it shall be seen how She will behave herself vis-à-vis the old saying: “Man proposes, God disposes.”

BTW, where has the good spirit of the Siem Reqp “giant noum ansâm” of yesteryear gone? Buddy yesterday, enemy today! Selfie yesterday, handcuffs today! Such is cruel and sinister human nature and interaction!

Kacvey, you might also ask why “the Year of Hanumaan” instead of the traditional name “Year of the Monkey?” Well, if a monkey can be attributed to a year, why not the lord of the monkeys itself, as some say “Year of the Ram”, others “Year of the Goat” etc … It’s lexicology in motion. Besides, monkey is trivial, small-fry, zoo or circus, or concept “speak no, see no, hear no evil”, whereas Hanumaan is the Ramayana Monkey of the monkeys – similar to his equal Sun Wukong (孙悟空) of the “Journey to the West” (西游记) – that overpowered the evil giant Ravana and his rakshasa and rakshasi.

Therefore, it’s better to have the clever, courageous, honest and fun Hanumaan on the side of the ordinary Khmer who pursue a good end for the country and against all odds and others’evil means.

So, for people who do not like “change”, this is going to be a big “change” that they are creating for themselves!

What’s all this “change” about, you may ask?

It’s about the big nabob who has decided that, from now on and once a year, he will invite newsgatherers to an audience to share discussions and questions and also to dine and dance in their company. Nobody knows yet what would be the format for discussions and questions, nor the list of the invitees, the menu, the wine list or the name of the band, but MinInfo has been tasked to draw an operations plan for the event.

Pending the chicken is actually hatched, let imagine a parody of a fictional Q & A between Dau Chéch and a newsgatherer. Here is how the avant-première would go:

Newsgatherer: Thank you, Sir, for agreeing to sit down and have a chat with the press.

Dau Chéch: It wasn’t easy to come to this decision.

Newsgatherer: What so? Something big had happened that compelled you a change of heart?

Dau Chéch: You remember Sunnylands, in February? Well, in the middle of it, all of us had to witness President Obama addressing the press corps after the announcement of the death of an US Supreme Court Justice. It was drama at its apogee, and President Obama handled it confidently and brilliantly even against the barrage of the Republican opposition. I couldn’t sleep in the plane on the way back home, thinking about the nature of relationship between the US President and America Fifth Estate.

Newsgatherer: Then what, Sir?

Dau Chéch: Well, it was a big revelation to me: President Obama represents the US, so does the “People” of the Congress, and so also does the press that symbolizes the American people’s opinion, view and thinking. It’s a huge triangular interaction. Against this background, my unhappiness with the protests by the Cambodian-Americans against me is peanut. It wakes me up from my small dreamland. Am I a statesman or am I not?

Newsgatherer: You seem to be very philosophical today, Sir. So you saw the most powerful man on the planet in real action, and it belittles you, doesn’t it?

Dau Chéch: Well, you can’t compare Cambodia with the US, but to be in the laboratory of superpower scares and also humbles the hell out of me!

Newsgatherer: Is there any other factor besides the Sunnylands experience?

Dau Chéch: In fact, there is one more.

Newsgatherer: Surprise! You must have been pondering quite a bit, Sir!

Dau Chéch: Because I’ve failed to convince many Cambodians and many foreigners that Cambodia is no longer living in the shadow of the Communist regime which I once belonged to, I want this time to show them a different “me.”

Newsgatherer: Oh, Sir, this is not a theater stage where you can change costumes and act different roles in one play!

Dau Chéch: I know that. I could do it if I only could stand next to President François Hollande on the steps of the Palais de l’Elysée, or next to President Obama on the White House lawn or next to Prime Minister David Cameron in front of 10 Downing Street and in front of a forest of microphones responding to questions from the press!

Newsgatherer: So, you often have had those dreams at night?

Dau Chéch: Call it dream’s weakness! Why do you want to go so much into my brain?

Newsgatherer: Not going into your brain, Sir, but just try to make sense about what you would be doing. But that doesn’t explain your change of heart.

Dau Chéch: No, it doesn’t but when the reaction against my Facebook “like” was getting stronger and harsher, that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I had to put 2 and 2 together.

Newsgatherer: Which is…?

Dau Chéch: Which is that I have to find a better way to communicate with the public through the press or media to reaffirm my statesmanship. I can no longer be afraid of the press!

Newsgatherer: You acknowledge then that your Facebook exploit is not enough and even falls short of your expectations?

Dau Chéch: Small ponds for small fish. Big issues need bigger stages.

Newsgatherer: So when you came to that conclusion, why didn’t you, for example, make the announcement at the end of the meeting of the Council of Ministers and in front of your own office?

Dau Chéch: Only MinIfo is aware of the plan, and there hasn’t been any meeting of the Council for quite sometimes now.

Newsgatherer: Then why giving to this Thailand-based Union Media of ASEAN the premiere?

Dau Chéch: Because there is no Cambodian “Union Media” that gives me any award?

Newsgatherer: Why do you need anybody to give you award when you can award any award you want to yourself, like the number of military stars on your shoulders?

Dau Chéch: MinInfo is putting things together and you’ll be informed in due course.

Newsgatherer: Then, Sir, what would be the criteria that you would give to MinInfo?

Dau Chéch: 1. Only journalists who never wrote negatively would be invited.
2. Only their legitimate spouses would be part of the dining and dancing program.
3. All questions must be submitted in advance in writing.
4. Questions will be orally raised exactly the same way they were written and submitted; any deviation will see the author expelled pronto from the event.
5. MinInfo will select the questions to be asked as not all the questions deserved to be answered; no follow-up questions allowed.
6. After Q & A, all portable devices will be confiscated and later returned to the owners when departing the event. “Indiscretion” can give headache later on.
Is that clear?

Newsgatherer: This will not be a spontaneous press conference?

Dau Chéch: I never said that it’s going to be spontaneous. It is a “prepared” press conference.

Newsgatherer: Sir, if you wanted to stand next to the Western world leaders for live joint press conferences, you have to be ready to accept spontaneous or on-the-spot questions?

Dau Chéch: Everything starts with an education. This is the first tryout. I plan to be in this position until I am 90 years old, or when I feel I’d have enough, therefore I have plenty of times to prepare myself for “that” occasion.

Newsgatherer: Sir, you will then make a lot of journalists unhappy. They do their job, don’t they?

Dau Chéch: If they do their job, I also do mine. I’m not here to please them, but they are here to please me.

Newsgatherer: Then, those journalists will still continue to write negatively.

Dau Chéch: To write negatively is the job I create for them! You, included.

=====

Update on 14 April 2016

Newsgatherer: Sir, have you seen an article about Mr. Putin’s annual call-in show as in this link http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/russias-vladimir-putin-kicks-annual-call-show-n555746

Dau Chéch: Mr. Putin is Mr. Putin. He deals with Russia. I deal with Cambodia, and I don’t need to hear millions of Cambodians asking me questions. I already have the answer to every possible question. I am the “Q & A.”